Week 1 - My Grandmother's Hands Black History Month Book Club
It’s time to start this year’s Book Club!
As you do your reading throughout the week, feel free to leave your thoughts In the comments!
If you’re answering a specific discussion question, please find it in the comments and respond underneath it.
I will be posting reminders in my stories to check in to see if you’ve missed any of the discussions!
This book club is free and open to anyone. I will be monitoring the comments, but please remember that Instagram is a public forum.
Reminders
If you read ahead, please keep your discussion comments to the week's readings.
If you get behind on the readings, that is okay!
The exercises in the book are important to do.
Being uncomfortable while reading this book is to be expected!
You can get updates emailed to you every week by subscribing on my website.
Week 1 Reading Breakdown
February 1st-7th: Beginning- Chapter 6
96 Physical Pages.
3 hours and 29 audio minutes.
Week 1 Discussion Questions
What does White Supremacy mean to you?
What are some ways dirty pain impacts our society?
What is a strength your ancestors passed onto you?
Favorite quote from this week's reading?
Anything else you'd like to share?
Some of my favorite quotes from this week.
"As every therapist will tell you, healing involves discomfort- but so does refusing to heal. And over time, refusing to heal is always more painful." -Resmaa Menakem, 2015, p. 19
"When someone with unhealed trauma chooses dirty pain over clean pain, the person may try to soothe his or her trauma by blowing it through another person using violence, rage, coercion, deception, betrayal, or emotional abuse." -Resmaa Menakem, 2015, p. 37
"The concept of 'the Negro' was created to help white Americans deal with the hatred and brutality that they and their ancestors themselves had experienced for many generations at the hands of more powerful white bodies." -Resmaa Menakem, 2015, p. 63
"Oppressed people often internalize the trauma-based values and strategies of the oppressors." -Resmaa Menakem, 2015, p. 79
It's not too late to join the discussion! Make sure to head to my Instagram to join the conversations: